Dress and Tie
by thegoodyouth
Summary: Blaine Anderson transfers to Redston and Layne Boarding School after his mothers death - and is greeted by a group of elitist snobs who take an instant dislike to him. But there is so much more to RAL - namely, one Kurt Hummel. Klaine AU. by Shane C.
1. Chapter 1

**(NOTE FROM THE FORMER MISSTOTALLYAWESOME - this is a fanfiction written by a very good friend of mine, Shane. We are joining forces on this account because he's like, freakin' talented and is helping me with my fics and I'm letting him post this on my account because he's a lazy fecker. And now he is glaring at me over webcam. kay. Story behind username - He's Shane. I'm Jade. His last name is Clemens. He is superior. He gets the last name.)**

_Hey there, I'm Shane. I recently found this site as I re-discovered the world of fanfiction through livejournal, and really wanted to try my hand at it again. About three years ago I started a Harry Potter fanfiction and completed it eight months later, and I immensely enjoyed the process, so I think I may edit it and post it up someday. But, I had an idea for a Glee AU fanfiction that I was simply dying to write. Here's a brief summary outlining the general gist of my AU._

_Blaine Anderson has newly transferred to Redston and Layne Boarding School, his parents idea of a fresh start for their son, who had troubles back in his old school in California. There, he meets a group of elite, insufferable people who happen to end up being his roommates - just his luck. He also realises, this place is a hell of a lot more uptight than his old school. But, there is one person who seems to not fit in just as much as he does - Kurt Hummel. And soon, Blaine realises there are two different worlds here at RAL…_

_I cant really explain the idea without giving the entire plot away. Anyway, there is no real Dalton Academy or McKinley high, I mean, RAL is practically both of them mixed together. There is another high school, whose Glee Club we'll meet, which is the Lima High School of Performing Arts, and their show choir is basically New Directions minus Kurt._

_Anyway, I hope you enjoy the first chapter._

"Another mid-term transfer?" Daniel Logan shook his head, sighing. "Redston is practically full as it is. If we keep accepting them, next years freshman will have to board in Layne."

"That's hardly your concern, is it now, Mr Logan?" Principal Halverson peered at the newly appointed head of Redston building, remembering that he had never taken well to new kids on the block. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to leave the new transfer kid in his hands, but then again, there was nobody else he could trust not to scare him away before he'd even started classes. "Hurry along, now, Blaine is waiting anxiously in the reception area with his father…" although they were alone in the room, the principal lowered his voice slightly. "His mother is recently deceased. The circumstances are unknown. The boy is very fragile, very confused, and has had a lot of trouble at his past schools. I trust you will make him feel safe and at home."

Daniel shook his head. "Is boarding school really the best place for him, then?"

He smirked slightly. "As much as I enjoy our chats where you try to create drama where there really is no cause for concern, Mr Logan, I regret I will have to cut this one short." he handed his best, but sometimes most annoying, student a folder with the name **Blaine C. Anderson **printed on the side. "Leave that in to Stacey at reception, will you?"

He nodded curtly, and turned on his heel, marching out of the principals office. The minute he shut the glass door behind him, he had his head stuck in the folder, trying to suss out everything there was to know about this new kid. The only thing he could deduce was _Wow, he is going to have it tough here. _

_(…...)_

"You'll be okay here."

"I know, Dad. I'll be fine." Blaine repeated for the hundredth time that day. "A new start." Blaine didn't necessarily believe this himself, but he was saying it for his fathers sake, and even if things were really bad here, he had no intention of letting him know about any of it. The last thing he needed was more stress.

"Blaine Anderson?" a tall, stockily built dark haired boy, most likely a senior, had approached them, holding out his hand to John Anderson, and then to Blaine. "My name is Daniel Logan, I'm head of Redston building, where you will be boarding. I'm here to give you a tour of campus and introduce you to your roommates."

"Thank you," John said, nodding at Daniel. "Well, Blaine, looks like you're in good hands here."

He smiled. "Yeah. I'll see you at the weekend, Dad."

Daniel raised his eyebrow. "Do you want some time to say goodbye?"

"No." Blaine replied, a little to quickly. The sooner his dad left, the better, really.

"Fantastic." the older boy said in complete monotone. "Let's get going, then. Dinner is in precisely 78 minutes, and we can't be late for that, unless you're happy eating your food stone cold." Blaine couldn't work out if he was joking or not - he had an air of general sarcasm about him, that made it hard for him to form a good first impression.

"Straighten up your tie, Anderson." he added, as he led him out the door of reception and into the deserted campus grounds. "The way you wear your uniform says a lot about you."

"It does?"

"Right." he pursed his lips. "I assume you've read the brochure? It outlines everything you need to know about the school, the campus, it's facilities, and the history of Redston and Layne. But, in case this information has escaped you," he sighed, "here is a quick reminder. The school was founded by Harold Redston and his wife Danika in 1875. It was set up as an institution of learning where the option of boarding was available as to offer students the opportunity to immerse themselves in an environment of education very much like college. Redston is the name of the building where the boys reside, and Layne, which was Danika's maiden name, is where the girls stay. Classes are mixed, streamed by ability, and take place in the middle building, dubbed by some students as _Rayne_." Daniel rolled his eyes, as if the sheer idiocy of combining names was beneath him. "Any questions on that?"

"Uhm, no, all clear, thanks." Blaine shifted uncomfortably. There were a few things he wanted to know, naturally, but Daniel looked far too irritable. There really was something about him that Blaine didn't like. Maybe it was his abruptness. "Except… how does the boarding work?"

Again, the seniors eyes wandered up to heaven. "Unfortunately, Redston house is getting rather full. There are four to a room. You are sharing with…" he pulled out a list from his messenger bag. "_Ah_. Yes. James Morgan, Hunter Gibson, and Grant McCoy. They're all Sophomores, like you. Room 13C, Floor 2. I'll bring you up there soon, your bags should already be there, reception take care of that, and I'll get you a key card." Something seemed to had changed Daniels tone a little. He decided to test the waters a bit.

"Do you know those guys? Are they nice?"

He was met with a cold glare. "They're perfectly good students, no trouble as long as you don't cross them."

What was that supposed to mean?

_(…...)_

An hour later, Blaine found himself being brought up to the second floor of Redston. It was… a hell of a lot bigger than he expected, first of all. A round, tower-like building that reminded him all too much of Gryffindor Tower (this thought making him feel weirdly more comfortable with the whole thing), with spiral stairs that made his knees ache after a mere two minutes of climbing, it gave off a very medieval vibe.

Until, however, Daniel handed him the key card he had picked up from the secretary. Blaine swiped it through the machine, and the door swung open by its own accord, leading him into… well, a room definitely bigger than the Gryffindor dormitory, that was for sure.

It was like he had, in one step over the threshold, left the 19th century castle and entered a 21st century mansion. But before Blaine could take in his surroundings - the chrome walls, the slick appliances, the various other doors - three figures appeared in front of him.

"New kid?" a red-head looked down at him. Blaine had never exactly been tall, but in comparison to everyone he had met so far, he felt like a house elf.

"This is Blaine Anderson." Daniel supplied from behind him. "Be nice."

"I suppose we all remember what it's like to be the new kid here in Redston." a blonde sighed. "Still, we cant be having this again. Remember what happened last time?"

"Oh, Hunter, don't go there. Nightmare. How long did he last, two weeks?"

"Less than that, Grant."

"Must have been about nine days." the third boy, obviously James, nodded. "It's not for everyone."

Blaine looked at them. "Why?"

"Clashing personalities." Daniel interjected quickly, glaring at the three guys.

"He was a _total _whimp!" Hunter laughed. "He couldn't even afford the uniform, and did you see his weekend clothes?"

"You call them clothes? More like potato sacks and bin bags!"

"You judge people based on their annual income?" Blaine raised his eyebrows.

This silenced them. Hunter stepped forward slightly. "This isn't some crappy public school. This is Redston and Layne. Unless you're planning to hang out with the freaks up on floor seven, those _misfits_, this really isn't a place for you."

He couldn't help but thing that these guys were total assholes. And he had to _live with them_? No wonder the last boy left after nine days - nine days seemed like an admirable feat, seeing as Blaine was already considering packing up and running for the hills. What kind of place had his father sent him too?

"Well, we best be going to dinner." James cleared his throat. "See you around, Anderson."

They all smirked at each other before exiting the room.

"You could have warned me about that."

Daniel grimaced. "You had to see it for yourself, really."

"So what are you? Snob or misfit?"

"Snob. But I have to be impartial here, now that I'm head of this building. They are my friends, and I wholeheartedly agree with everything they think, but it's my job to be sympathetic to you. You're going to have a hard time fitting it here."

This is ridiculous, Blaine thought. Daniel could hardly tell what kind of person he was just by -

"I know just by looking at your hair and your shoes and then listening to the way you speak and seeing the way you look at others what crowd you're going to fit in with. Don't look so surprised, I see lots of Redstons come and go." he smiled slightly. "This doesn't mean I'm on your side. I have my allegiance. But, if things ever get bad - if anything happens that breaks a direct RAL code - I have a duty to report."

"Uhm, thanks, I guess."

Daniel sighed. "We operate a Dress & Tie policy here, Anderson."

"What's that?"

He ignored him. "I showed you where the dining hall is, correct? Don't take too long up here."

Blaine nodded and watched Daniel vacate the dorm. As soon as the door closed, he let out a deep sigh, and slumped down against the wall. Even his high school in California was better than this - at least he got to go home at the end of it.

He shook the thought from his head. No. He was overreacting. They couldn't all be stuck up snobs - there were bound to be some people with common interests as him. He knew there was a glee club, like the one he had been a part of in his old school, maybe he'd try out for that.

There was a knock at the door. He jumped up, wondering who would want to get into the room who didn't have access to a key card. He pressed a large button that had 'admit' written on it (screw Hogwarts, this felt kind of like a spaceship).

"Hey," a boy, just barely taller than him, with brown hair and - holy crap, Blaine thought, the most striking blue-green eyes he had ever seen - smiled slightly at him. "My name's Kurt Hummel. You're new."

"Word travels fast around here?" he breathed, holding on to the door frame to steady himself.

"Are you okay?" he peered at him. "You look a bit… sick, actually… Oh. Did you meet your roommates?"

"Yeah."

"What do you think of them?"

"They seem like delightful human beings."

"I thought as much." Kurt nodded. "Daniel told everyone that there was a new transfer, and from the look on his face, I could tell it wasn't one of his elitists. I thought I'd let you know that, we're not all like that."

"Are you the floor seven misfits, by any chance?"

"Yes. We're not all on floor seven. That's just where the smaller common room is, where we're usually left in peace. I'm actually just across the hall. I live with one other nice guy - Darren Lynch. The other two…" he shuddered. "Make our lives a living hell. We're by no means worse off than them, either, it's just that we're different."

"So basically if I'm not a certain way, I'm fucked?"

"No, not as long as you have us." Kurt was smiling again. "We have our own fun, you know."

"Right." Blaine smiled back. "Uhm, are you on your way down to dinner."

"No." he shook his head rapidly. "We ate a while ago. We don't go to the dining hall - we go to the cafeteria in Layne, or just order in. But, if you want to get some food down there, I'll come with you."

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm not even that hungry. Actually," he reconsidered. "I am, but if you stay away from them even at dinner time, it must be bad."

The other boy laughed. "Yes. Well, I have some leftovers in my room, if you want to come over? It'd just be us two - Ethan and Theo, the other two, will be gone for a few hours and Darren's at glee club rehearsal."

"Sure, that would be great."

_See, Blaine?, _he thought to himself. _Nothing to worry about. Not only an hour in and you're already going to a cute guys room. _He immediately wanted to slap himself for even thinking that. "Uhm, so, actually, about glee club, are there like, auditions?"

"Oh, yes, there's auditions at the end of the month." Kurt blushed slightly. "I'm not in it - I just… I want to try out. But every time auditions roll around, I freak out." Kurt stopped himself. _Really, Kurt, you're going to open up to a complete stranger about this? _"I don't know if I'm good enough."

This surprised Blaine. "You should go for it! The worst that can happen is you don't get in, right?"

"I suppose…" he sighed. "It's just… singing is kind of important to me. I don't do it in front of anyone - if I was told I wasn't good, I'd be crushed."

"I'm sure that's not the case, though. Hey, if you ever want an unbiased, honest opinion, I'm here. Seriously."

"Really?" he looked at him. "Wow, thanks… Oh, I'm such an idiot!" he grinned. "I didn't even ask you your name!"

He laughed. "I'm Blaine. Blaine Anderson."

"It's nice to meet you, Blaine Anderson."

**_I hope you enjoyed this! I will get the next chapter posted up as soon as I can! -S._  
**


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you so much for the comments and the favourites and the subscriptions - it really means a lot to me. I would have updated earlier in the day, but I got kind of carried away writing a Chris/Darren oneshot.- Shane. PS: Shameless use of a Darren quote in this part. ;) Oh, and a Taylor Swift lyric. Jade urges me to use them._

_**Chapter Two:**_

"So," Kurt looked at the new boy curiously, handing him a plate of Chinese food, before helping himself to a handful of prawn crackers. "Where… where did you transfer from? If you don't mind me asking, of course."

"Santa Monica High School, California." Blaine said, smiling gratefully at the sight of food. New surroundings seemed to make him hungry. "Of course I don't mind you asking. I get it. New boy at school, instant curiosity right there."

"Yeah, you're right." he chuckled. "But, really, when I heard there was somebody new starting here, the thing I was wondering about the most was just if you'd be another one of them." he rolled his eyes slightly, and sighed. "The last two were."

Blaine peered at Kurt, questioningly. "What do they do to you guys? Derogatory comments and such?"

"That and more, yeah." he grimaced. "It's not even that we're any worse off than them in life - quite the opposite, in some cases! But… we all have something off about us - according to them - just something they don't approve of. Me, for instance," he cleared his throat uncomfortably, not sure how Blaine, who he knew so little about, yet seemed to trust so instantaneously, would react to this. "I can afford just as much as they can, I am just as picky about my hair product and my clothes and the quality of my possessions as they are, but - well, I'm gay, so…" _crap_, Kurt thought, as he saw Blaine's eyes widen at this statement. _Please don't think…_

"They don't like you because you're gay? Well, looks like I have no chance of escaping their torment either."

"You…?"

Blaine nodded slightly. He didn't know what made him share this fact so openly with a virtual stranger, but there was no reason for him to hide it, was there? It was nice to know there was another openly gay guy here. He'd considered not telling anyone - being gay had started the trouble back in Santa Monica! But that seemed silly, to not be himself. He just had to figure out a way of blending in while doing so, to avoid conflict. Although, if he was being honest with himself, conflict seemed to be the main event at Redston and Layne.

"Well, it's… I'm glad you feel you could tell me that." Kurt thoughtfully took a bite out of his cracker. "There are a few others, of course, and I have my suspicions about some of the elitists, as well. It's no big deal with us - we think there's nothing more badass than being who you are - and only the worst of them will give you grief over it. Unfortunately, they've been on my case since the first day of freshman year. That was before I even came out!" It was insane, but Kurt found himself wanting to share his experiences with Blaine - what was it about those deep brown eyes, that open, kind face, that made him feel such a connection with him? Oh, right. He was crushing on the new boy already.

"That's awful. What do they…" Blaine stopped himself. "I'm sorry. You don't have to answer that, of course, it's personal. I just… I know how it feels."

"I don't mind!" he blurted out. "I… it actually feels kind of nice to be able to talk about it… weird, maybe," he laughed slightly, "considering we met less than an hour ago -"

"I don't think it's weird at all." Blaine looked away slightly as he said this. "I think that when two people… meet… this is going to sound corny, okay," he re-made eye contact, and then realised it was a terrible idea, as his eyes were fucking _mesmerising. _"But, if there's a connection, if there's a…spark… you know, it suddenly doesn't matter how long you've known the person."

His chest tightened slightly. "Like… instant friendship, right?"

"Uhm, yeah." Blaine bit his lip, breaking the eye contact once more. "Yeah. Like you were…meant to come and knock on my door."

Kurt couldn't help but feel a little disappointed - but of course this personification of perfection that was sitting opposite him wouldn't feel a that kind of a connection with someone like him. It was stupid to think that. It wasn't like Blaine could instantly fall for his less than mediocre looks, or his non-existent charm, or the fact he had been bullied for the majority of his school life, which were the only qualities he had portrayed so far. _Should have thought about that one, Kurt._

"Hey," Blaine suddenly remembered something. "Daniel… he said something to me earlier. Something about a Dress and Tie policy… what the hell is that?"

"Oh god!" Kurt groaned. "Yes, the Dress and Tie policy, the original foundation stone, a rule set up by the very first students of Redston and Layne! They never shut up about it! Basically, it states… _We will treat you as your appearances treat yourself._"

"That doesn't make any sense."

"It's meant to mean that… If you keep up appearances, put on the dress and tie your tie to the standards deemed acceptable, you will be treated right. If your appearances reflect your imperfections, you will be treated as an imperfection."

"You lost me at tying ties." Blaine laughed. "Daniel told me to straighten up my tie the moment he saw me. He said the way we wear uniforms says a lot about us as a person, or something."

"Dress and Tie!" Kurt nodded. "He…told you to straighten up? That's strange. Maybe he wanted to give you a chance."

"Daniel didn't seem like the type to give chances."

"No, that's true." he sighed. "Hey, do you want to maybe go up to the common room? The floor seven one, of course. I'll introduce you to the others."

"If they're as nice as you? Bring it."

Kurt smiled. Oh, he thought, this boy was amazing. _Please don't be in love with someone else. _

_

* * *

_

_I'm kind of notorious for short chapters when I really want to separate plot points - next chapter we'll be meeting some really, really important people and be learning some more about what kind of place Blaine has come to - and Kurt of course cant shake his (what he thinks is an) unrequited crush. Poor boy!  
_


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry I didn't get a chance to post this sooner - writing was kind of impossible with the migraines I've been having. :'( Thanks Jade for the kick up the arse today, much appreciated. No seriously, she gave me an awesome idea today, because she's awesome. _

_**Chapter Three:**_

"Guys, Kurt's on his way up."

"With the new kid?"

"Man, I wonder what he's like."

"I feel sorry for him, already being shunned by the elites."

"What's the deal with him, then?"

The four boys sitting in the seventh floor common room of Redston building had been chatting animatedly about the new addition to the school for the past hour, getting slightly more excited when they had received notification from Kurt, who had volunteered to say hi to the new kid, that he would be bringing Blaine along that evening. It wasn't often someone came to RAL and didn't at least attempt to fit in with the others, so it was immediately intriguing to them what this Blaine guy lacked according to the elites.

They heard a thud of footsteps on the hard wood floors, but when the door swung open, it wasn't either of them that wandered towards the setup of armchairs and couches, but Darren Lynch, one of Kurt's roommates.

"Hey! How was Warblers practice?"

"Eh, slow," Darren replied. "Why didn't you come, Nick?" he added, slightly annoyed. "You left me with all the snobs."

The dark haired boy shrugged in response. "Where were Wes and David?"

"David's in the nurses office. Someone messed with his food again. Wes is on the council, so he doesn't count."

"I cant believe they actually voted him on the council!"

"Jealous, Aaron?" Nick smirked, cracking open a can of soda.

"That's not what I meant. It's just… one of us? On the council?"

"Well," Darren sighed. "Wes is 'one of us' by choice. They don't have anything personally against him… and it probably looked good in front of Halverson. Not that it necessarily matters, as he is as much on their side as Nick's soda is mine."

"Oh, please, you have a fridge full of cans in your room."

"Guys! Shut up! I think I can hear them!"

"What? Jeff, what are you talking -"

"Kurt and the new guy. Blaine."

(…...)

"Don't worry," Kurt said as they climbed the steps to the seventh floor - apparently the elevators were out of service, an unusual occurrence. "You'll like them. They're decent guys."

"Thanks for the reassurance." Blaine laughed, fidgeting slightly with hands, like he always did when he was nervous or stressed.

"Beware of the interrogation that usually comes with a new member of the group." he smirked slightly. "Honestly, they just want to know everything there is to know so they can look out for you. You'll learn each of their stories in turn, though, too. Right, quick walkthrough of the group." Kurt stopped at the foot of the last flight of stair and took a quick breath.

"I mentioned Darren to you before - my roommate, a Warbler. Then there's Nick, also a Warbler, he and Darren are usually joined at the hip, unless Nick's done something to piss him off. They'll never get together, as much as we know they both like each other.

"The only couple within our group is Aaron and Jeff. Aaron's a Warbler, but Jeff was kicked out pending re-audition. Long story. There's Jonathan, basically our resident Barney Stinson." he paused for a second. "Do you watch How I Met Your Mother? Because it's sort of our religion. Along with Grey's Anatomy."

"Is this Jonathan as good looking as Neil Patrick Harris?" Blaine grinned. "Or is he more of a McDreamy?"

"Oh man, you're gonna fit in well. He's definitely a McDreamy, except he's a redhead. Straight as an arrow, although he did go through a phase where he had a crush on Jeff - I think all of us have, though. Anyway. There's Wes and David, they're best friends and also Warblers.

"And, finally, we had a transfer the beginning of the year, from Lima High School of Performing Arts. His name's Jesse - we haven't sussed him out yet. He seems nice enough, but he seems like the type of person who would fit in more with the elites. We thought that about Wes at first though, too. You wont get to meet Jesse until tomorrow, he's not going to make it back from his parents until then."

"So, all in all, I have nothing to worry about?"

"Nope." Kurt grinned. "Now, enough of that - it's time you form your own opinions."

Blaine, slightly more at ease now, followed Kurt up the stairs, taking two steps on at a time.

Kurt was mentally trying to prepare a way to introduce him to the others without being completely, utterly obvious that he was totally crushing on him already, but found he was too late, as they were suddenly standing outside the open door of the common room they assembled in every evening to get away.

"Kurt! Get in here now!" Nick called, beckoning them in.

"Hey guys," Kurt grinned. He grabbed onto Blaine's hand - _crap, why did I do that? _- pulling him into the comfortable looking room.

Wow, Blaine thought, feeling the boys fingers close around his. The sparks flying up and down his arm right now could not be normal.

"This is -" he was saying, before a blonde cut him off.

"Let him introduce himself, Kurtsie."

"Jeff, how many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?" he glared at him.

"You love it. Go on, new kid." the boy who must be Jeff said to him.

Blaine swallowed an imaginary lump in his throat. "Uhm, I'm Blaine Anderson."

"Where are you from?" a redhead - Jonathan - looked up from a textbook he had been studying on his lap.

"Uhm, I've lived in California all my life…"

"Ohh. Big change." another boy smirked. "I'm Darren, by the way." Darren had curly black hair (though it wasn't nearly as curly as Jonathan's), and seemed to have a really friendly face, which Blaine was grateful for. "So, why the big move?"

"Well…"

"If you don't feel comfortable saying, you don't have to. I'm Nick." the brown haired boy smiled.

"Oh, it's… it's okay. It's just, my dad has a big business opportunity down here, and we have family in Lima. My, uhm, my… my mom died, and I had trouble at my old school, so he saw it as a perfect opportunity?"

"What kind of trouble?" Jonathan looked up, concerned.

"Nothing serious. Just… yknow. Didn't have an easy ride." Blaine didn't really feel comfortable divulging into the past he was desperately trying to block out of his memory.

"I get you." Darren nodded. "Sit down."

"Yeah!" Nick pushed up on the couch, making room for both Blaine and Kurt to sit. "Do you want a soda?"

"SERIOUSLY, Nick? Did you take those from my -"

"This isn't the time for soda gate!" Jeff groaned. "We have this about ten times a day." the blonde sitting directly beside Jeff shook his head. "Aaron, by the way. Nice to meet you, Blaine." he spoke in a distinct cockney accent.

"Nice to meet you, too - all of you." Blaine smiled as he and Kurt sat down beside Nick.

"Be nice to him, he still has to go through all of this with Wes, David and Jesse!" Kurt warned. He was still holding onto Blaine's hand. Hey, had his fingers shifted so they were - no, don't be stupid, he scolded himself.

"St James still has to go through all of this with us, too! He doesn't talk about himself at all. Well," Darren reconsidered for a second. "He does. But not about his past."

"Wait," Blaine perked up. "St James? Jesse St James? Why is that name familiar?"

"Oh, he's a legend. He won Lima Arts School's glee club their past three national titles."

"Of course. They beat my old clubs ass last year."

"What was your club called? Have you ever crossed the Warblers?" Nick asked curiously, handing him and Kurt cans of soda.

"We were Vocal Stamina. I only joined last year though, so…"

"Are you considering auditioning for the Warblers, then?" Aaron said, glancing at Jeff. "If you are, you and my idiot boyfriend can help each other out. He has to re-audition because he's an idiot."

"Story for another day." Jeff put a hand up to stop him from elaborating. "I'd rather not think about that."

"Sorry, babes." he rolled his eyes. "Dalek attack?"

"YES. Guys, we have to go." Jeff quickly stood up, grabbing a coat from the ground and pulling Aaron out of the room, slamming the door behind them.

"They need to not be so obvious about their code words." Darren observed, causing some members of the group to giggle mercilessly. "So, Blaine." he leaned forward in his seat. "Did you get everything from Daniel?" he said the name with a twang of extreme dislike. "Timetable and everything?"

"Yeah, I think so." he said, rummaging in his pocket for the piece of paper he'd been given. "Yup. Physics first thing tomorrow."

"Lemme see that.," Kurt glanced over at it. "Hey, we're on same rotation!"

Blaine grinned. The fact that he'd be sharing classes with Kurt for the rest of the semester excited him more than it should…


	4. Chapter 4

_Hey guys! I'm sorry for the wait. Ajdhdhaghadgd I hated not being able to post. I've been with limited internet access and hardly any free time due to Uni work. I do sometimes actually attend class. Who woulda thought? Anyway, I think you'll be rather glad to know I now have my own apartment, with my very own broadband and up to chapter 15 of this fic stored safely on my laptop. _

_Oh, and Jade apologises muchly for not updating her fics, she's been in and out of hospital and swamped with coursework as well. She's okay though, and should be back soon. _

_**Chapter Four:**_

Blaine returned to his room, much to his dislike, a couple of hours later. Having spent the evening with the guys, he felt a little bit better about the school. They seemed nice… especially Kurt.

His happiness at the fact that he had found a group of friends which included a rather beautiful gay boy _who had held his hand for almost half an hour _however, vanished slightly as he walked through the doors of room 13C. His roommates hadn't looked like the friendliest of guys in the first place, and after what he'd heard about them from the others, he was even less thrilled about seeing them lounging in the sitting area, in front of the Xbox. They had turned their heads to him, looking him up and down.

"Hey, Anderson." Grant commented, smirking slightly. "What did you do with yourself tonight, then?"

"Uhm, I met some people…"

Grant exchanged looks with the other two. "Hey, man, we're sorry about any, uhm, misunderstandings we had earlier." he cleared his throat slightly. "You're a junior, right? So am I. I'm happy to show you around to your classes and stuff tomorrow… we should get to know each other, after all."

Blaine peered at him suspiciously. He certainly had changed his tune.

"I'm sorry if we came off rather… brash." Hunter added. "It's the way Daniel expects us to act, being one of 'his' group, and all. You're new, he wants us to test you. Just know you don't have to be stuck with those misfits if you don't want to. They're rather…"

"…troubled." James finished for him. "They all have their dramas. Secrets. There's a lot more to them than you think. Don't believe everything they say about us - there's two sides to every story, and they definitely aren't innocent."

"Why should you believe us though, right?" Hunter read his expression perfectly. "Let us prove it to you. Have lunch with us tomorrow. Hang out with Grant during classes - he'll fill you in."

"Uhm…" Blaine grimaced. "I kinda said I'd hang out with the others. Uhm, one of the boys is on my rotation, so…"

"Who?" Grant raised his eyebrows.

"His name's Kurt Hummel…"

"Hummel? Wow." James laughed.

"What?"

"He's just definitely a person you don't want on your bad side. Vicious little thing, oh so amusing though…"

"I've heard the same things about you guys." his voice rose slightly, in defence.

"Like I said, there's two sides to every story."

Hunter nodded. "James is right. See for yourself."

"Look, decide what you want to do tomorrow." Grant said, quickly. "The offer is there. For now, do you wanna join us for some gaming?" he held up a spare Xbox control. "You play?"

Blaine allowed himself to grin slightly. While he did not trust these guys, it wouldn't hurt to have them on his side, for a while, anyway. "Probably better than you three put together."

The three laughed, and began shouts of 'bring it on, Anderson!'.

(…...)

"So, honestly." Kurt whispered that night. "What do you think of him?"

Darren rolled onto his side to face his roommates bed next to him, and nodded. "I like him. I mean…he seems shy… but I certainly have nothing against him hanging out with us." he paused. "I think the more important question is, what do _you_ think of him?"

"I'm sorry?" he said, sharply.

"You're as obvious as Aaron and Jeff's code words. That's saying something." he laughed. "I don't blame you. He's cute… okay, there it is." he grinned at the expression on his friends face as he said that. "You like him."

"I hardly know the boy! I admit, I felt a… connection to him," he blushed lightly, but Darren didn't notice as it was dark. "and he's very… aesthetically pleasing…"

"Oh, come on, Kurt."

"Fine. He's freakin' gorgeous. Plus, he's shorter than me."

"By like an inch."

"Whatever! It means I'm not the smallest of us anymore. It's nice to not be the _only_ normal sized person in a group of human-giant crossbreeds."

Darren smiled. "Are you going to ask him out?"

"No! I couldn't. I don't know him. I don't know what he went through, or if he has someone back in Santa Monica, or if he even dates. I'm not going to make things awkward between us before we even get to know each other."

"You seemed pretty cosy. I'm just saying! He seemed sort of smitten. Why wait?"

"Maybe you should take your own advice."

"Huh?"

"Nick?"

This shut his roommate up for a moment. "You know that's different." he finally said, his tone of voice considerably softer.

"Why? Because of what happened last year?"

Kurt took the silence to mean that it was still something Darren didn't want to talk about. "Daz, it's you. You know when he's around you…" he sighed. His probably wasn't the best time to push the point.

(…...)

Blaine was awakened early the next morning by an extremely loud crashing noise sounding from the hallway. It pained him slightly to climb out of his ridiculously comfortable bed, to pad across the floors and crack open his door to check out what was happening.

"You did WHAT?" he saw Grant yell at Hunter. "No, no, no! We did not discuss this!"

"I'm the Team Captain, I can do what the fuck I like, thanks Grant -"

"You're acting co-captain, that does NOT give you the right -" he threw his hands up in exasperation. "Did you even get in contact with Toby and _consult _him?"

"He said post new sign up sheets! Everyone can try out! I cant discriminate against -"

"Why not? You guys have every other year! I'm sorry, but I am NOT having my position threatened by some misfit -"

"And if you're good enough to still be on the team, you have nothing to worry about!"

Blaine tried to pull the door closed, figuring it would be best not to enter the scene, but before he even attempted to, he realised the two boys were already looking at him.

"Anderson, you're awake. What do you think about Hunter's stupid stunt -"

"Blaine, it's not your problem, don't answer-"

He shook his head, quickly stepping out into the hall. "Uhm, I didn't really catch the full story anyway -"

"Well then, let me explain it to you." Grant snarled slightly, his eyes fixated on Hunter. "Some idiotic acting captain of the football team - not naming any names here - decided to post a sign up sheet for try outs - OPEN try outs. As in, open, to the whole school." he shoved a piece of paper at Blaine's chest. "As it happens, some floor sevens decided to put their names down."

"And, that's a problem, because?" he ventured.

"Exactly! Thank you, Blaine!" Hunter seemed satisfied with this. "Maybe Grant would care to explain that to both of us?"

"Pertuce will be observing the tryouts!"

"What's a pertuce….?"

"Our football coach, Oliver Pertuce. He doesn't discriminate against groups - he doesn't have a specific allegiance. He lets the team members vote who gets on, with the captain making the final decision, but, if he sees that we vote on somebody who isn't as good as one of _those," _he spat slightly. "He can override us. And I'm not having my position as linebacker threatened -"

Blaine was starting to seriously dislike these guys once again, but tried not to show any distaste to how he had just spoken. "How do you know they'll even be a problem?"

Hunter laughed. "Grant has always been jealous of Aaron Lowes' skills on the football field. Luckily, he couldn't try out due to an injury last year, which is why Grant made it onto the team."

"He should know better than to try out! He knows we cant stand him and his poxy friends!"

"At least Nick didn't sign up this year."

The sly smile and chuckle exchanged between the two boys made Blaine feel seriously uncomfortable, and he wasn't sure if he should ask. He didn't get a chance to, though, as Grant changed the subject.

"It doesn't matter. Lowes has been out for a year, he's out of practice. He might not be such a threat. Anderson, get dressed, breakfast is in ten. If you want to come with us, that is…"


End file.
